The Tennessee Titans didn’t have a great day on Sunday by any stretch. They hosted a 2-0 Indianapolis Colts team led by a resurgent-for-the-first-time-ever quarterback Daniel Jones and got popped to the tune of 41-20.
It surprised many that head coach Brian Callahan even kept his job after last season’s four-win debacle that led to the first-overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. But, now the Titans have fallen to 0-3 and this year just seems like more of the same.
“Callahan incurred the ire of the fans when the team took a delay of game penalty before trying a field goal on fourth-and-1 late in the second quarter,” writes Pro Football Talk’s Josh Alper. “The penalty came after both the Colts and Titans used timeouts and it forced Joey Slye to take a 62-yarder that he missed. That left the Colts with good field position and enough time to extend their lead to 20-6 at the break.”
Callahan acknowledged that it “looks really bad at the end of the day.”
Should Brian Callahan be worried about his job yet?
It won’t be tough to find a litany of Titans fans that would like to see the team move on from Callahan right now. In fairness, it does seem like he’s in over his head. It’s still a little puzzling that they would keep a questionable head coach with a No. 1-overall pick starting at quarterback. Most teams would just clean house and start fresh.
Not the Titans!
Following the butt kicking, Callahan was asked if he was worried about his job security.
“I don’t really worry about that to be honest,” Callahan said. “My focus is on trying to make sure our football team is in as good a place as possible, and the rest of that stuff is what it is. I don’t think about those things. You really can’t. I mean this is hard enough as it is to put those other things and think about that doesn’t do anybody any good. I just go to work and work as hard as I can. I put as much effort as I can into this and that is what it is.”
Insider calls for Titans to move on from Brian Callahan
Jimmy Morris of Music City Miracles acknowledges that he’s supported Callahan in the past. But, he also details why it’s time for him to go.
“Take for instance today when, by his own admission, he couldn’t make a decision about whether or not to go for a 4th and 1 even after the Indianapolis Colts took a timeout and he took a timeout,” Morris writes. “The Titans got a delay of game following the two timeouts because the field goal unit was late getting on the field. That’s unacceptable.
“You could also point to the play he challenged in the fourth quarter when the Colts were given a first down on a first down pass. Now, he ended up winning the challenge, but the risk there far outweighs the reward. The Titans were down 41-20 with about 8:30 left in the game. The timeout that is at risk there is much more valuable than the half-yard that he gained by winning the challenge, especially when you consider that Jonthan Taylor gained five yards on the next play.”
It’s not looking good for Callahan.
The Titans travel to Houston to take on the Texans next Sunday. The Texans are 0-3 so there be a chance for Callahan to pick up his first win of the season. The Texans are thinking the same.